Only Gray Clouds
by Traw
Summary: Is Steve responsible for a wrongful shooting? An alternate ending to the episode- No Blue Skies.


***Summary of Scene from the episode 'No Blue Skies'***

_Suspecting that Nimo Linkoa is involved in the cat burglaries of high rise hotels in Honolulu and in the death of a young lady, McGarrett instructs Danny and Kono to follow him while McGarrett is involved in the interrogation of two other prime suspects – Joey Rand, a nightclub singer on the verge of making it great but who is also deeply in debt from gambling and his girlfriend- Valerie Michaels, whose flat mate was murdered after she tried to leave Hawaii with the proceeds of one of the robberies. The interrogation ends with Steve not believing the suspect's lies about how their car ended up at the airport where Valerie's flat mate's fingerprints on the steering wheel._

_Kono and Danny follow Linkoa to a souvenir shop where they believe the stolen items are being taken. After informing Steve of their location, Danny and Kono quickly take up positions at the front and the back of the shop. Linkoaafter entering the shop and collecting his share of the loot spots Kono and Danny taking up their position and noticing an internal stairwell that leads to the roof draws his gun out of his waistband and hurries up the stairs. Once on the roof, Linkoa quietly creeps to the edge, his gun trained aimed at the back of the unsuspecting Danny below._

_Arriving at the address where Danny and Kono have followed Linkoa, Steve hurries to where Kono waits at the front of the building. Receiving a quick report that Linkoa is still inside, McGarrett asks the location of the newest and youngest member of his team. Kono tells him that Danny is around the back, Steve ducks down low, un-holstering his gun as he hurries to the back of the building to back up Danny._

_Just as he rounds the side of the building, he notices Linkoa on the roof above preparing to shoot Danny in the back. Realizing Danny is unaware of the danger; Steve shouts a warning as he aims his own gun at Linkoa and shoots as Danny turns towards him in surprise. Linkoa tumbles from the roof after the first shot and Steve squeezes two more rounds at the suspect as Linkoa falls to the ground._

*** End of Summary***

* * *

Linkoa hit the ground hard, his gun landing just inches away from his outstretched hand. Moving quickly, with his gun still aimed at the motionless suspect, McGarrett reached Linkoa's side in a couple of strides and kicked the weapon out of reach.

Kneeling down the dark-haired detective palpated the motionless man's neck, silently relieved to feel the slow steady beat beneath his finger tips that reassured him that he had not taken a life. Rolling the unconscious man over, McGarrett quickly tore the bloodied shirt away from Linkoa's right shoulder. Two small, round bleeding holes showed that at least two of his bullets had found their mark. The two wounds, only inches apart, were just below the collar bone, neither bullet wound bled uncontrollably, nor appeared life threatening. A large bloodied lump on the side of the suspect's head seemed the more likely cause of the man's state of unconsciousness- Linkoa must have hit his head as he crashed to the ground.

Hearing footsteps close by, Steve looked up, expecting to see Danny standing above waiting to be instructed if an ambulance or the coroner should be called. He was surprised to find Kono with gun still drawn waiting for the order.

"Steve?"

"Better get an ambulance!" McGarrett answered distractedly as he quickly scanned the area, looking for his youngest detective, a cold chill snaking into his soul as he stared at the empty space where Danno had been standing only a few brief moments before. His chest tightened in dread as he slowly stood up and took a few reluctant steps towards the boxes that Dan had been standing by as a soft unwanted thought crept into his mind. 'Oh God, No! I couldn't have! ... Please No!'

Kono hesitated and frowned as he watched McGarrett's odd behavior, only realizing for the first time that he had not yet seen Danny. He held his breath in sublime fear as he watched McGarrett move slowly towards a pile of boxes stacked near the rear door, silently praying to the gods that Steve would not find what he feared was there.

Forcing his wooden legs to move past the boxes, McGarrett froze and stared in horror at the scene that he found behind them. On the ground Danny lay motionless on his back; the front of his once olive jacket was now soaked in blood. "Oh God! Danno!" McGarrett whispered brokenly as he ran to the downed detective. Falling to his knees, he placed his fingers to the cool clammy skin of Danny's neck, trying to find a pulse. It took several attempts to find the faint throb beneath his fingertips and he breathed out a silent prayer of thanks.

"Steve?"

Kono's fearful whisper snapped him free of his shock, pulling the handkerchief from his pocket, he quickly tore open the ruined jacket and shirt, revealing the jagged bullet wound beneath. Placing the handkerchief over the wound, he began to press down applying pressure in an attempt to control the bleeding. "Get on the radio to that ambulance, Kono; tell them to step on it!" He ordered never taking his attention from Danno as he continued to press down on the wound, aware of the blood that began to trickle through his fingers, his eyes closing in anguish as he whispered, "Oh God, I'm sorry Danno! I'm sorry!"

A soft moan caught his attention and he opened his eyes and found Danny's blue pain filled eyes staring back at him. "Easy Aikane, easy," he managed to croak through his tightened throat as Danny moaned again and shifted in pain. "An ambulance is on its way. Easy, I've got you. You're going to be fine!" He whispered as he placed his free hand gently on Danny's cheek.

Danny stared up in dazed disbelief and shock at the man he considered more than just his boss. Since he had joined the Five-O team several months before, Steve had become his advisor, mentor and his closest friend, "You shot…me."

Choking back a sob at the soft accusation, Steve swallowed hard and whispered, "I'm sorry Danno. Oh God, I'm sorry!" as Danny's eyes slid closed and the sounds of sirens and running feet echoed on the pavement behind them.

Stepping out of the examination room, Nat Schneider was unsurprised to find his young, dark haired partner waiting for him. "Any word on Williams' condition yet?" he asked softly as he joined his partner.

"Still on the operating table." Hawkes answered as they slowly walked down the corridor towards the waiting room where McGarrett now waited. "His condition was listed as critical when they took him in. The docs sent down the slug they removed from his chest. Looks like a .38. I've sent it to the lab for a ballistics test."

"What about McGarrett's and Linkoa's guns?"

"Sent them both to the lab as well. Looks like the only gun fired was McGarrett's but the lab will confirm that."

"Steve admitted at the scene that he fired all three shots." Nat confirmed quietly, "And he admitted that he believed he was responsible for Williams' injury…"

"Sounds like Williams got caught in the crossfire- straight forward case of accidental shooting – it happens!" Colin stated before he paused and turned to look up at the taller gray-haired man whom he had been partnered with for the past six months since transferring into Internal Affairs. The look on Nat's face warned him that he had missed some part of the puzzle. "So, what's the problem, Nat?" he asked softly, not certain if he wanted to know the answer.

"Linkoa claims that the shooting was anything but accidental. He says he witnessed Steve shoot Danny down in cold blood before he realized that Linkoa was there. He has accused Steve of shooting him to cover up what he did."

The younger Internal Affairs officer stared at his partner, shocked at the criminal's claims. "You…you can't …you don't really believe Linkoa, do you Nat? I mean this is McGarrett and Williams we are talking about here! Everyone knows just how close they two of them are! There's no way that McGarrett would deliberately try and murder Williams!"

"I agree Col and I doubt that Linkoa is telling the truth but until we can prove otherwise, we have to take his accusations seriously and fully investigate this shooting from every angle." Nat reminded his partner as he placed a hand lightly upon his partner's back and began to guide him down the corridor towards the waiting room. "I need you to get Kono's written statement about what happened at that souvenir shop today, make sure you get every detail, no matter how trivial it might sound. Then I want you to go through the Five O case notes on the high-rise burglaries. I want to know everything about this case, who was involved, what was Linkoa's role in this mess and how close Steve was to making any arrests and wrapping up the case. If there is any suspicion that Linkoa is trying to use the shooting to blackmail Steve because Five O was getting to close, I want it to know about it immediately!"

Pausing at the closed waiting room door, Colin turned towards Nat. "Are you going to interview McGarrett?"

Glancing at the closed door, Nat nodded and sighed. "I'll have to tell him Linkoa's accusations and get his version of the shooting." Nat fell quiet a moment as he turned back to his partner and he rubbed a hand across his face before he sighed and added, "And I am going to have to tell him that Danny's room is totally off limits to him. Until we can get this whole mess sorted out, Steve won't be allowed any contact with Danny at all."

"He's not going to like that." Colin stated softly.

"No, he won't." The older man answered, "And if I were Steve, I wouldn't like it either, but it has to be done. The only way to handle this situation is totally by the book and Steve will understand that. So, you better get going."

The younger officer nodded before he tilted his head towards the door, "Good luck."

"Thanks." Nat murmured as he watched his partner walk away, aware that if he was in Steve's shoes at the moment, how painful and distressing it would be to be told that you could not even have any contact with your critically injured closest friend. The pain intensified by the fact that that the man you loved like a younger brother was also the man you accidently shoot and wounded in the line of duty. Drawing a deep breath, Nat turned and pushed open the door.

Sitting in the chair, Chin watched his boss' agitated pacing. He still found it difficult to believe himself that Steve had shot Danny and knew the accident was tearing his boss apart. He also knew that there was nothing he could say or do would comfort the distraught man. The only thing that Steve McGarrett wanted to hear was the doctors reassuring him that Danny would be alright.

The door slowly pushed open and both men jumped as they anxiously waited to see who was entering the room.

Seeing the anxious look of expectancy change to a look of resignation from both men as he entered the room, Nat asked softly, "Any word on Danny's condition?"

Steve shook his head and turned away as he began to pace the small room. "Doc promised to let me know immediately when there was any news, but it's been over two hours…"

"I'm sure as soon as the doctors have any news on Danny's condition, they will give you a full update."

McGarrett nodded unconvinced as he continued to pace. "I still can't believe this is happening Nat." Nat remained silent as McGarrett continued almost as if he had forgotten he was there. "I can't believe that I shot Danno. My God, I was trying to stop Linkoa from shooting him in the back! I just wanted to stop Danno from being shot…I never thought that this could happen!"

Nat nodded in sympathy before he said quietly, "Steve I have spoken to Kono about what happened, but I need a statement from you."

Aware that Nat needed to conduct this interrogation in private, Chin rose from his chair and cleared his throat, "Um…I better get back to the office Steve, Kono's holding down the fort by himself. Let us know as soon as you know anything. I'll be back later."

McGarrett stopped his pacing and nodded to his detective, watching as Chin hurried from the small waiting room before he turned towards the Internal Affairs officer. Nat waited patiently for Steve to begin. "Kono and Danno followed Linkoa after we released him from questioning at HPD. We suspected that after we questioned him that he would go back to home base and lead us to where the stolen jewelry from the cat burglaries were being hidden. I received the radio call from Danno to say they had followed Linkoa to the souvenir shop. I decided to join them.

After I arrived Kono informed me that Linkoa was still inside and that Danno was covering the back. I knew Linkoa was dangerous, Nat, he was our prime suspect in the murder of the girl we suspect was trying to pull a double cross on the gang and attempting to flee with the loot. I also suspected that if Linkoa decided to make a break for it, that he would probably attempt to make the breakthrough the back entrance and I wanted to give Danno some back up. I headed around to where Danno was …."

"Williams was standing near the back entrance?" Nat interrupted.

"He was standing with his back to me." Steve confirmed as he continued his report. "As I entered the back alleyway, I spotted Linkoa on the roof. He had his gun aimed at Danno's back. I knew Danno wasn't aware that he was about to be ambushed, so I shouted a warning as I aimed and fired up at Linkoa."

"You shouted a warning to Williams before you fired?" Nat asked.

McGarrett nodded, his eyes glazed as he remembered the next horrifying moments of what had occurred. "Linkoa still had his gun raised as he turned towards me and I fired three times as Linkoa."

"You fired three shots while Linkoa was on the roof?" Nat tried to clarify the shooting.

"No, I fired the first shot as he was on the roof. The other two shots I fired as he fell. I wasn't sure if he had dropped the gun and I didn't want to take the chance that he would start shooting when he hit the ground. I thought that I had hit him with each of my shots, but it wasn't until after I checked him that I discovered that I had only hit him twice."

"Okay Steve, when you discovered you had hit Linkoa twice, what happened?"

Steve swallowed hard, blinking back the tears that threatened to fall. "I heard Kono ask if we were okay and I told him that we needed an ambulance for Linkoa. It was then that I realized that I hadn't seen Danno."

"What then, Steve?"

Turning away from the Internal Affairs officer, McGarrett stared unseeingly out of the window "I… I had a bad feeling about where my third bullet might have gone. I prayed that I was wrong, that maybe Danno had somehow managed to slip out of the yard to ring for an ambulance without either Kono or myself having seen him leave…I was hoping…" McGarrett fell quiet for a moment before he drew a deep breath, forcing himself into cop mode to give his report before he turned back to Nat. "I knew that Danno hadn't left the yard. I knew what had happened. Even before I found Danny, Nat, I knew that I had hit him with my third shot. Oh God, Nat, I shot Danno!"

"Are you saying Steve that you were the only one to fire your gun?" Nat asked quietly. McGarrett nodded. "And you are positive that Danno was accidentally shot?"

"What are you getting at Nat?" Steve asked aghast at the question, "You don't think I would shoot Danno on purpose, do you?"

"Of course not, Steve, but we have a problem. I spoke with Linkoa before they took him to surgery and the story he tells us is the opposite of what you have just told me Linkoa claims that Danny's shooting was no accident, in fact he claims that he witnessed you attempting to murder Dan." Nat informed Steve, watching closely for McGarrett's reaction to the serious accusation. McGarrett stared at him in shock and disbelief as he continued. "Linkoa admitted that he had spotted Danny and Kono after he had entered the shop. He realized immediately who they were and after dropping off the jewelry and grabbing his money decided to try and escape from the roof.

He stated that he was unaware Danny was standing at the back entrance to the store until just before Danny was shot. After he reached the roof, he claims he noticed you sneak around the side of the building with your gun drawn. He stated that he heard you call to Danny. He claims that it was only then that he saw Dan near the back entrance with his back to the street. He told us Danny turned towards you after you called his name that you deliberately aimed the gun at Danny, pulled the trigger and Danny went down. It was only then he believes that you realized that he was on the roof and had witnessed what you had done and that's when you shot him to shut him up from telling anyone what had happened."

"That's a lie, Nat!" McGarrett yelled angrily, horrified that Nat would even listen to such a blatant story. Nat knew how much Danno meant to him, knew that he could or would never be able to intentionally hurt his closest friend, let alone try and murder him.

"Steve, you know that we have to investigate every angle of this shooting and at the moment we have a witness who is claiming that Danny's shooting was not an accident but attempted murder and then you attempted to murder the witness.'

"Your so-called witness, Nat, is a man involved in a string of cat burglaries scattered across the country"

"Whatever Linkoa has been involved in Steve will not make a difference if this goes to the Grand Jury. He says that he saw you shoot Danny down in cold blood. You admitted that you shot Danny as he waited near the back entrance."

"Damn it, Nat! It was an accident…I was aiming at Linkoa. This is just a ploy by Linkoa to take some of the heat off himself. Give me a couple of minutes with Linkoa. I will make him tell you the truth." Steve demanded.

"Steve, you know that I can't do that! I have to follow strict protocol on this one. There can be no signs of a possible cover up. The media is all over this. At the moment it is your word against Linkoa's word until Danny Williams is conscious and able to tell us what happened…" Lowering his voice, Nat gripped the lead detective's shoulder giving it a light squeeze as he drew a deep breath and continued with the edict he knew McGarrett was not going to like. "Until that happens, Steve, I'm afraid that you are officially suspended from duty until the case is fully investigated and you are not to have any contact either Danny or Linkoa!"

"That is NOT going to happen, Nat! I don't care about the suspension but there is no way that YOU or anyone else is going to stop me from being by Danno's side!" McGarrett growled.

"Steve, you know the drill!" The Internal Affairs officer answered firmly, squeezing the tense shoulder under his hand, "Until Danny can tell us precisely what happened, this is now an attempted murder case and you are the prime suspect. I can't allow you to see or speak to Danny after he regains consciousness until we interview him first."

"I'm afraid that no one will be interviewing Danny during the next twenty-four to forty- eight hours." Doc's tired voice interrupted.

Both men swung around in surprise as Bergman closed the door and slowly walked towards them, tugging the surgical cap from his head with one hand as he held up the other forestalling any questions as he headed towards the coffee pot that sat on the table in the corner and poured himself a mug of the lukewarm sludge.. Taking a sip, he grimaced at the taste as he turned back to the two men anxiously waiting for him to speak. "He's critical but he'll live." He announced quietly as he collapsed onto the nearest chair and waited for the other two men to sit.

"Thank God!" Steve murmured as he rubbed a shaking hand over his face, wiping away the tears of relief that began to trickle down his face as he sat heavily onto the chair opposite, the adrenalin and fear that had kept him on his feet suddenly dissipating "Can…can I see him?"

"Steve!" Nat warned softly but his objection was ignored by the other man as Bergman began to speak.

"He's in recovery at the moment, Steve, and they should be transferring him up to Intensive Care soon. Let them get him settled first." Doc answered softly.

McGarrett nodded before he swallowed the lump in his throat and asked, "How-how serious …" He could not bring himself to finish the question over the fear filled thoughts that was screaming in his head. _'How seriously did I hurt him? Oh God, please don't say the injury is permanent! Oh Lord, please say that he will make a full recovery from this.'_

The guilt and fear on McGarrett's face was painful for the Coroner/ Official physician to the Five 0 detectives to see and Doc hurried to reassure the distraught man, "Danny's condition is critical, the bullet tore through his right lung causing it to collapse and hemorrhage. We managed to repair the tear and stop the bleeding and the lung is already showing signs of re-inflating. I won't lie to you Steve, Danny lost a lot of blood and is extremely weak at the moment. I intend to keep him heavily sedated for the next twenty-four hours to give his body time to rest and begin to recover but he's young and strong and barring any unforeseen complications he should make a full recovery."

"Thank you, Doc," Steve's voice cracked as he looked up gratefully at the man sitting opposite him, "Thank you for saving Danno's life." Bergman nodded but before he could say anything else Steve asked again, "Can I see him?"

"Steve…" Nat interrupted as Doc nodded and stood but was silenced as McGarrett swung around to face him.

"I don't give a damn about procedure Nat and I don't care what that slime Linkoa claims!' He growled, "This is Danno-"

"Easy, Steve, easy." Nat soothed quietly as Doc glanced between the two men aware that something serious had occurred while he was in surgery with Dan. "I was just going to say if Danny's unconscious there is no way you can influence his testimony." Steve's tense posture relaxed a little as Nat continued, "But there must be a second person in the room with you when you are with him." Nat ignored the flash of anger that crossed McGarrett's face as he softly reminded the lead detective. "You have been accused of trying to murder Danny and Linkoa, remember Steve? And until we can disprove the allegations, I'm afraid that it's my way or no way. It's your choice!"

"What? Who accused you?" Doc stuttered, shocked at the conversation the two men were having.

"Linkoa is claiming I tried to murder Danno." Steve explained before returning his attention back to Nat and nodded in defeat. "I guess it's your way for now, Nat," he agreed reluctantly, "but only until we can prove that Linkoa is lying!"

"Don't worry Steve, we will find the truth." The I.A. officer reassured him, "Why don't you and Doc go check on Danny, while I head back to the Palace. But remember Steve, there is to be someone with you at all times and once Danno regains consciousness…"

"I know Nat, once he regains consciousness; he is off limits until you can talk to him." Steve completed the order before he turned and began to follow Doc from the room. Reaching the door, he stopped and turned, "And Nat, mahalo!"

"Just don't let me regret this Steve." Nat warned, "No arguments when Danny regains consciousness, understand?"

"Understood.' Steve replied before stepping out of the room and disappearing from the Internal Affairs officer's view.

Steve stopped as he reached the door of the small Intensive Care room that his closest friend and Second-In-Command now occupied. The sight of the motionless figure in the bed caused hot bile to bubble up the back of his throat and he found himself unable to approach the man whom he regarded as more than just a colleague or friend but as a younger brother.

_'This is your fault that he is laying in that hospital bed, fighting for his life! You did this to him! He's not going to forgive you, no matter how much you tell him you're sorry, not this time! And why should he? After all you're the one who shot him!'_ A voice screamed in his head as he stared from the doorway at the heart machine that beeped softly beside the bed, the two drips the hung above the patient, their tubes snaking down to disappear beneath the surgical tapes that secured the IV needles in both arms and the pristine white dressing that covered most of the right side of the patient's chest. Danny's face was obscured by an oxygen mask that covered the lower half of his face, _'You did this to him!'_ The voice screamed at him again and he swallowed down the sob that threatened to escape.

"Steve?" Doc felt McGarrett jump as he gently placed his hand on the younger man's back and his chest tightened as Steve turned and looked at him with devastation in his eyes at the sight of his youngest detective. Squeezing Steve shoulder, Doc tried to reassure him. "Danny's going to be fine, Steve. He will recover fully from this and he will know like I do that no matter what Linkoa is saying this was just an accident. He's not going to think for even a minute that you did this deliberately."

"He already does." Steve whispered as he turned back towards the figure in the bed, as Danny's pained filled voice and shocked eyes slammed into his mind. "_You shot me!"_

"What do you mean?" Doc asked as he stared at McGarrett. "Steve?"

McGarrett swallowed hard and shook his head, unable to tell even Doc about Danny's soft accusation that still reverberated in his head. Aware that Doc was watching him closely; Steve forced himself to take the first few steps towards the bed, his heart breaking as with each step he took. Danny's gray pallor and rugged breathing became more evident as the voice screamed louder in his head. _'You did this to him!'_

Standing in the doorway, Doc watched silently as Steve reached the side of the bed and stood as if momentarily uncertain of whether Danny would want him there after what had happened. Doc held his breath and waited as Steve mentally struggled whether to stay or leave. The guilt from the shooting was tearing the detective apart and Bergman knew if Steve left now, he would never be able to face Danny again.

Stopping next to the bed, Steve was unable to stop the tears that began to fall as he stared at Danny's pale face. "I'm so sorry Danno," He whispered as be reached his hand across the bed rail and placed it on Danny's bare shoulder. "I'm so sorry Aikane. I never meant to hurt you. I would never have taken that shot if I had known. I just wanted to keep you safe. Please forgive me. I know that I have no right to ask that off you not after what I have done."

Suddenly pushing himself away from the bed, McGarrett turned and stalked across to the small window before he suddenly swung back towards the bed, his eyes flashing with anger as he growled, "Damn it Danno, why didn't you drop when I called out the warning! If you had just hit the ground when I yelled your name, we wouldn't be here now!"

"Steve!" Doc's shocked and angry voice from the doorway made the lead detective jump. Embarrassed at his loss of self-control and aware that he was taking out his anger , fear and frustration on the one person who least deserved it, he mumbled an apology as he slowly returned to the side of the bed.

"I'm sorry Danno," he whispered as he placed a trembling hand back on his young friend's arm, "I didn't mean a word I just said. I just can't understand how I hit you Aikane; I thought that you were out of my line of fire. I just don't know how I could have misjudged where you were standing so badly. This is my fault not yours, Kaikaina, I'm so sorry."

"Steve, I'm sorry but we have to leave. Danny needs to rest, and I have to get back to the morgue, I have some customers that just aren't going to wait." Doc said quietly.

McGarrett nodded before he leaned closer to the man in the bed. "I'm afraid that I can't stay with you now Aikane, but I promise that I won't be far away. I'll be watching you from the window. I'll be back just as soon as I can get a nurse to accompany me, I promise. So rest, and I'll be back soon," he whispered as he gave Danny's arm one final squeeze before he straightened and walked back to the door.

Doc grabbed his arm gently as he stepped past and stopped his egress. "I'll tell the nurses that you can accompany them into the room each time they do their checks."

Wiping away the tears that stained his face, McGarrett silently nodded his thanks as Doc slowly followed him out.

Stepping out of the elevator, Chin headed towards the glass doors that lead into the Intensive Care unit. Even at this early hour of the morning he noticed people sitting in the small waiting room located just adjacent to the ward, waiting for the few precious minutes allowed every hour when they could visit critically ill relatives and friends. Chin sighed as he pushed open the doors and entered the hushed environment of the ward, even from the doorway he could see McGarrett standing at the observation window staring into Danny's room. He wondered briefly if the boss had even gone home last night but he knew in his heart that Steve would not leave the hospital until Danny was conscious and well on the road to recovery. His suspicions about where Steve had spent the night were confirmed when the boss turned towards him, the dark circles under McGarrett's eyes were prominent in the too pale face. The lead detective appeared to have aged overnight and Chin could easily read the guilt and the anguish in the other man's eyes. Reaching McGarrett's side, the Chinese detective looked through the observation window at his wounded colleague on the bed, his own heart breaking at the sight. "How is he?"

"Still critical but the nurses keep telling me he is getting stronger with each passing hour." McGarrett answered quietly as he turned back to the window, staring again at the motionless man in the bed. "Doc said if he continues to improve as well as he has overnight, he'll reduce the sedation and allow Danno to wake sometime this afternoon." McGarrett's fist hit the window, causing Chin to jump in surprised as Steve growled. "Damn it, Chin, how did this happen? Why did I take that damn third shot? I knew Danno was standing near the door! Oh God, what did I do? I almost killed him! I just hope he can forgive me."

Grabbing Steve's arm, Chin spun him around to face him and holding the lead detective firmly by the shoulders, began to chastise him. "Steve, I don't know what happened yesterday in that yard beside the shop, but I do know that you shooting Danny was a tragic accident and that Linkoa's version of the shooting is a lie! I know you and I know that there is no way that you could or would deliberately shoot Danny down in cold blood! And when Danny regains consciousness, I know that he is going to say the same thing - the shooting was an accident.

He's not going to blame you for what happened. He's going to need you by his side while he recovers. What he is not going to need is you feeling sorry for yourself because of something that accidently happened. You wouldn't accept this type of self-pitying behavior from him, so why should he have to accept it from you!"

McGarrett blinked in surprise at the fatherly lecture he had just received. Blushing under Chin's no-nonsense stare, he nodded, "You're right Chin, Danno doesn't need my guilt. Mahalo, my friend." Embarrassed at his slip in self-control, Steve asked, " I know that I'm suspended but is there anything going on at the office that I should be aware of?"

"We wrapped up the cat burglary case last night," Chin informed his boss as he began his unofficial report. "We received a report that there was another cat burglary attempt last night at the Ilikia but this time our burglar ran out of luck. The motel guest unexpectedly returned to the suite and caught the burglar in the act. He shot and wounded the suspect as he fled."

"So, our cat burglar was wounded?"

"Shot as he went out the window, but he still managed to escape." Chin answered hurrying on with his report as he saw the flash of disappointment across his boss' face. "But while we were in the motel room investigating the robbery we received a call from Central informing us the Valerie Michaels was requesting to speak to us urgently about the case."

"Valerie Michaels?" Steve asked, "Interesting!"

"Even more interesting Steve was when we arrived at her apartment, we found Paul Oliwa dressed in black and lying on her apartment floor, dead from a gunshot wound to the stomach. It seems that he was shot while attempting to rob an Ilikia motel room a little earlier in the night." McGarrett frowned but said nothing as Chin continued his report. "Miss Michaels confessed to everything- She told us about supplying the names and room numbers of wealthy tourists that she knew would be occupied on her tour trips to Joey Rands to how Rands carried out the burglaries."

McGarrett's frown deepened, "I thought you said that Oliwa was the suspect shot in the cat burglary attempt earlier tonight?"

"He was!" Chin confirmed, "But apparently he carried out the burglary to give Joey Rands an alibi. According to Miss Michaels, Joey Rand use to work as a rigger in a travelling carnival until he was nineteen on the mainland and has a gambling debt to the mob for over two hundred thousand dollars."

McGarrett gave a low whistle and shook his head, "Two hundred thousand dollars, that's one heck of a motive for becoming a cat burglar especially for someone that works as a rigger."

"Yeah," Chin agreed, "Especially while waiting for a hit record. Anyway, after Linkoa's shooting yesterday Rands got nervous, worried that Linkoa might spill the beans so he talked Oliwa into doing the robbery."

"To throw the heat off himself." Steve murmured disgusted that the young singer was willing to risk other lives just to give himself an alibi. "Where does Linkoa fit into this?"

"He's the go between and enforcer Steve. He picks up the stolen jewelry and delivers it to the souvenir shop where the precious gems would be taken off the original settings and pasted on cheap custom settings and sent to the mainland as souvenir jewelry where the fence would be waiting to collect the shipment and sell the gems." Chin told him, after referring to the notes from the small notebook that he had pulled from his pocket and opened.

"So why the hit on Sarah Turner?"

"Miss Michaels told us that the night Miss Turner was killed, she had been held up on Maui because of fog and had contacted Miss Turner to deliver the stolen loot to Linkoa." Chin began.

"But Miss Turner got greedy." McGarrett interrupted, he had seen this scenario so many times.

"She tried to take the first flight to the mainland with the loot and Linkoa intercepted her at the airport. All pau!" Chin finished.

"So, have you picked Rands up?"

Chin looked down at his shoes and shifted nervously from foot to foot before he looked back up guiltily, "We tried to arrest Rands after his show at the Ilikia last night. He ran. We managed to surround him in the parking garage but he drew a gun. I'm sorry Boss; he didn't give us a choice. He died before the ambulance arrived."

Placing his hand on the Chinese detective's shoulder, McGarrett gave him a light squeeze of understanding, "It's okay, Chin. I would rather a dead suspect than lose a few good men. What about Linkoa?"

"We placed him under arrest as soon as he came out of recovery. He's charged with Murder 1 and Grand Larceny. I figured that should hold him while we worked out the other charges."

"Good work Chin." Steve said slapping Chin on the shoulder. "Tell Kono the same."

"Will do Boss." Chin smiled at the compliment before he glanced down at his watch. "I better go Steve, Nat Schneider is waiting for me at the office, he wants to recheck Kono's statement and check the forensic evidence from the …" Chin hesitated, clearly uncomfortable with the thought.

"He's just doing his job Chin." McGarrett reminded him gently. "I've been accused of trying to murder a suspect and …" McGarrett faltered momentarily, swallowing hard as he tries to control the tremble in his voice before he continued, "And …Danno. Nat has to find out is the accusations are true or false. I would expect him to do nothing less!" He forced a smile as Chin gave a brief but unhappy nod and nodded towards the doors, "Go before you're late. I promise that I'll give the office a call if there is any change at all in Danno's condition."

"Mahalo, Steve." Chin said as he turned towards the doors. He took a step before turning back to his boss, "Steve, what happened yesterday was an accident, we all know it and Danny does too." Chin added softly before he turned and hurried out of the ward.

Sitting at McGarrett's desk, Nat waited until Chin and Kono were seated in the high-backed white chairs in front of him before he pulled over the file and opened it "Che sent up his forensic report on the bullets removed from both Linkoa and Dan. All three bullets were fired from Steve's gun."

Both detectives glanced at each other before Chin spoke, "Steve has already admitted to firing the three shots."

"He has," Nat agreed as he sighed and picked up Doctors' reports before looking back at the two men. "Dr. Hilliard, the surgeon who removed the two bullets from Linkoa has reported that the bullets were fired from someone below and to the left of him. The first bullet wound track was at a much steeper angle then the second, which makes the injuries consistent to what Steve has told us happened. He fired once when Linkoa was on the roof and took the second shot as Linkoa was falling but unfortunately it also doesn't disprove Linkoa's claims that McGarrett tried to murder him to prevent him telling what he witnessed."

"I know," Chin sighed in frustration as he pulled his pipe from his pocket. He began to tap it against his hand before he stopped suddenly and looked up at Nat and then at Kono as he asked, "If you were in Linkoa's shoes and you just witnessed McGarrett attempt to murder Williams, what would you do? Would you remain out in the open on the edge of a roof where you could be spotted, or would you try and hide? Remember Linkoa admitted that he believed Steve realized almost immediately that he was there."

"I wouldn't be sticking around Bruddah, I would be hiding even if I had a gun." Kono admitted, his eyes turning to Nat.

"I admit that Linkoa's claims are full of holes but unfortunately Bergman has reported the trajectory of the bullet that hit Danny was fired from someone standing at least twenty feet in directly in front of him. It tends to indicate that Steve must have known Danny was in the line of fire when he was shooting."

"Ain't no way Steve would have taken da shot if he knew Danny was there." Kono muttered vehemently, "He went around da back to back Danny up not shoot him!"

"Word on the coconut wire at HPD is that it hasn't been all smooth sailing for Danny since he came aboard the Five-O team, that Steve has been riding roughshod over him." Nat stated before he casually picked up his mug of coffee and took a small sip, not missing the quick glance exchanged between the two Five O detectives as he continued to talk. "Seems there was heated arguments between the two when Steve allowed Joyce to go undercover a few months ago.* Heard that you could cut the tension between them with a knife." Nat paused a moment, aware of the uncomfortable silence that spoke volumes about the truth behind his words before he continued quietly, "Then there was that shooting with the kid-"**

"That was an accidental shooting Nat, he was cleared!" Kono exploded, his fist striking the arm of his chair, "Da boss was Danny's biggest support. If it weren't for Steve…"

"Danny would be sitting in a jail cell for a crime he didn't commit!" Chin finished angrily.

"I was part of the investigation Chin; I witnessed myself just how hard Steve came down on Danny." Nat reminded the detective before suggesting, "Maybe things were still tense between them yesterday, maybe Steve regretted bringing Williams on board or resented the fact that Danny is willing to argue when he disagrees with one of Steve's orders. Steve has no valid reason to fire Dan or even transfer him back to HPD…if there was trouble between them …then maybe Linkoa is telling the truth and did witness the way Steve decided to solve the problem…"

"You're wrong," Chin interrupted softly, "I agree that there have been a few rocky patches with Danny settling into the team but nothing that would have made Steve ever regret bringing him on board. In fact, I suspect that Steve believes that his decision to promote Danny to Five O is one of the best decisions he has ever made."

"Danny's akamai, he can work out things much quicker than Chin or I and Steve knows it." Kono added, "I wouldn't be surprised if da boss has plans for Danny to be the next Second-In-Command. Ain't no way Steve didn't want Danny in Five O! No way!" The Hawaiian leaned forward, the disgust written clearly on his face as he continued, "This whole story dat Linkoa is trying to feed ya is nothin' more than a lie! Ain't no way Steve would ever shoot Danno on purpose – he would jump into one of Pele's volcanoes than ever hurt Danny. I don't know what happened yesterday but whatever happened – it was an accident!"

"Whoa Kono, I'm on your side remember. I'm not the enemy." Nat placed his coffee mug on the desk in front of him, "But it is my job to discover if there was any trouble brewing between Steve and Danny that might have been only privy to the Five O staff. After that reaction from both you and Chin, I think I can rule out tensions at work as being a possible motive for the shooting." Nat relaxed a little as the anger and tension on both detectives' faces disappeared before he continued, "Was there any tension between the two of them privately? I know they are extremely close but maybe they argued over something? A girl perhaps?"

Both detectives shook their heads as Chin answered, "No arguments that we know of and as for arguing over a girlfriend- I doubt either of them is seeing anyone seriously at the moment. They have both been putting in long hours here at the office trying to break this cat burglary case. The Governor has been breathing down Steve's neck to get it solved."

"And he's been breathing down our necks Bruddah. None of us has had time to think about girls." Kono chimed in, "Besides Danny ain't seeing anyone at da moment." Turning towards Chin's questioning look, Kono explained, "Danny and Kimi are off again. She wants the relationship to get more serious…"

"And Danny doesn't?" Chin laughed at Kono's nod and shook his head, "Those two are off more than they are on."

"She won't be happy until Danny places a ring on her finger and says I do." Kono shuddered dramatically at the mere thought of that happening.

Shaking his head in amusement, Nat rose from the chair and quickly stepped around the table as he announced, "Doesn't sound to me that Steve had a motive for shooting. I'll be at the hospital taking Linkoa's statement about yesterday's events. Should be interesting to see how much it matches what he told me yesterday."

"You think he will change what he said?" Kono asked.

Schneider shook his head. "Oh, I suspect that he will stick to his account that Steve tried to murder Danny and then attempted to kill him as well when Steve realized that he had witnessed what had happened but…"

"He's had time to get his story straight about what happened." Chin continued as he realized what Nat was thinking, "The more time that Linkoa has to fine tune his story the harder it's going to become for us to disprove what he is saying, especially with the forensic evidence that we have collected so far."

"And with Steve's admission that he shot Danny." Kono added, "We're gunna be in big pilika if Danny can't tell us what really happened!"

"Let's hope that we can get a break in the case soon," Nat said softly, "Because if something doesn't break, I am going to have to take this to the DA and recommend Steve be charged with two counts of Attempted Murder."

"Nat, you can't!" Chin gasped horrified that the Internal Affairs officer was even considering that option so soon into the investigation.

"You wouldn't!" Kono growled.

"Listen guys, I believe that Steve is innocent too, but I have a job to do! At the moment all the evidence- forensic, Linkoa's accusations and eyewitness account of the shooting and Steve's own confession that he is responsible for the shootings is more than enough for Steve to be charged. If Danny can't remember what happened, then I'll have no choice but to recommend that Steve be charged. I'm afraid that the outcome of this case rests on whether Danny remembers what happened in the yard yesterday afternoon. Now if you two Gentlemen will excuse me, I have to meet with Col at the hospital and take Linkoa's statement about yesterday. I can almost bet that he will be eager to give us as much detail as he can in the hopes of obtaining some sort of plea bargain from the DA." Nat quietly told the two detectives as he rose and headed towards the door.

He hesitated a moment before leaving as he looked back at the two shock men sitting in the chairs. "I know its hard guys, I'm praying as hard as you are that Danny remembers what happened to clear Steve."

Both detectives remained silent as Nat turned and left the office. Only when they heard the anteroom office door close above the hushed sounds of the secretaries silently carrying out their duties did Kono speak.

The large Hawaiian rubbed his hand over his hair as he turned towards his partner. "What are we going to do? You heard Nat, if Danny doesn't remember…"

Chin rose from his chair and reached for the phone, dialing a familiar number as he spoke. "You, me and Che are going to go back over the scene. Maybe we missed something the first time and then we are going to go over every part of yours, Linkoa's and Steve's statements that was taken yesterday. We are going to check and recheck everything – just in case there's something we missed last night!"

"Let see if we have this right." Che said as he turned towards the men standing beside him, "Where was Steve standing?"

"About where you are now." Kono answered, "After I heard the shots, I came around the corner just as Steve straightened up from firing his weapon and moved to where Linkoa was laying on the ground."

"And where was Linkoa laying?" Che asked.

Stepping several steps further in the yard, Kono halted and pointed down to where a light chalk mark marked the spot of where the suspect had fallen.

"And Steve stated Linkoa was on the roof aiming his gun at Danny when Steve first spotted him." Che continued staring at the mark before raising his eyes to the roof to where the suspect had originally been standing before being shot. Satisfied he had found the approximate spot he turned his attention back to the detective standing beside him. "Where was Danny standing?"

"Both Steve and Linkoa said that Danny was standing near the door with his back towards us between the wall and the boxes." Chin continued as he walked slowly towards the area where Danny had been found after the shooting. "Both Steve's and Linkoa's statements placed Danny about here."

Che looked up at the roof before he looked back towards where Chin stood. "Linkoa would have had a perfect shot. Danny wouldn't have had a chance." He shook his head a moment as he turned back to concentrate on the scene. Frowning he stepped forward and stood in the spot that Kono had indicated Steve had been crouched at the time of the shooting. He stood for a moment as he studied the area before he glanced back at Kono. "Are you positive this is where Steve was crouched after the shooting?"

Kono nodded, "Da boss was standin' right where you are now. It was just inside the gate."

"What's wrong, Che?" Chin asked as he watched the forensic expert frown again and turned back to where Nat stood silently watching him.

"From the angle that Berg told me that the bullet had entered Danny's chest, there is no way that Danny could have been caught by a stray bullet from Steve's gun. Standing here the trajectory is all wrong!" Che answered quietly.

"So, what are ya saying, Bruddah?" Kono asked, not quite following the smaller man's train of thought.

Che swallowed hard and glanced towards Chin who appeared to understand what he had meant before he returned his attention back to the Hawaiian detective. "Steve's version of how Danny was accidentally shot doesn't fit in with the forensic evidence here, Kono. There is no way that Danny could have accidentally been shot by a stray bullet from Steve's gun from where he and Steve were standing. The only way Danny could have been shot was if Steve deliberately aimed at him."

"Ain't no way, Bruddah! Ain't no way Steve would ever shoot da Kaikaina!" Kono objected vehemently turning towards Chin for support.

Ashen faced, Chin looked helplessly at his partner as he tried to come up with another scenario that could explain the condemning forensic evidence. "Maybe… maybe… Danny accidentally moved into the crossfire." Chin suggested, desperately grabbing for straws that would explain what had happened. "Maybe he was trying to back Steve up or maybe Steve and Linkoa are mistaken to where Danny was."

"Maybe…" Che nodded as he studied the area, "If Danny stepped forward at the wrong moment that could explain how he was hit. It would also explain why Steve continued to fire as Linkoa was falling. I doubt he would have taken the risk of firing if there was even a remote possibility of Danny being hit."

"That's a lot of maybes, Bruddah," Chin sighed as his eyes roamed over the crime scene again. "And all that this proves at the moment is it's Steve's word against Linkoa's of how the shooting really went down. The only one who can tell us what really happened here yesterday is Danny."

"Let's hope he remembers." Kono mumbled as the three men turned and began to walk despondently from the fenced yard of the souvenir shop.

"How is Danny?" Che asked as they reached the car.

"Still listed as critical but improving. Doc's confident that he will make a full recovery." Chin answered across the top of the car before opening the driver's door and sliding inside. He waited a moment for Che and Kono to settle into the front and back passenger seats before he continued. "I stopped at the hospital before I came to work this morning. Steve was there, watching Danny from through the observation window." Noticing the confused look on Che's face he quickly explained, "Because of the investigation Internal Affairs have ordered that Steve be accompanied by a second person if he enters the room to visit Danny and once Danny regains consciousness he has been ordered to have no contact with him until after Internal Affairs interviews Danny."

"That must be tearing Steve apart." Che said.

"More than you can imagine." Chin replied softly. "The guilt about what happened is eating him alive and not being even able to sit with Danny is destroying him. I doubt he even went home last night.

"He would've driven the nurses crazy with requests for someone to accompany him into the room." Kono added.

"He did!' Chin agreed, smiling at the thought of the nurses' reactions of the lead detective's continual requests to be escorted into the room. The smile faded and Chin grew serious again as he continued. "Danny is still heavily sedated; Doc was going to reduce the sedation this morning if Danny continues to improve so hopefully we can talk to him sometime late this afternoon."

"Let's hope that Danny remembers something," Che sighed, "Because if he can't…"

"He will," Kono said confidently as he turned in his seat and looked at the smaller man seated in the back, "Danny would never let the boss down!"

The atmosphere in McGarrett's office was tense as Nat and Col entered and was greeted by the three men who were already in the room. Aware that the tension was not directed at them but rather the circumstances, Nat sat on the edge of McGarrett's desk as his young partner remained near the door. Looking at the blackboard that was now perched on two old wooden chairs just to the side of the room. The diagram depicted three figures located in the positions that McGarrett, Williams and Linkoa had been standing in the scaled drawing of the yard and side of the building. Without taking his attention away from the board, Nat asked, "What have you got for me, Che?"

"Maybe an explanation of how Danny was shot." Che announced as he stepped across to the blackboard and pointed to the diagram that was drawn there.

Nat studied the drawing as Che began to explain the possible scenario for the shooting based on what he had observed at the scene earlier and the trajectory angles of the bullets as they struck the two wounded men. Che pointed to the first figure that was crouching near the gate as he began to talk, "Steve said that he reached this area here when he first saw noticed Linkoa," He pointed to the second figure that was located on the roof, "on the roof aiming his gun at Danny who was standing facing with his back to both of them near the doorway between the wall and these crates."

The Internal Affairs officer nodded his agreement as Che continued, "Steve has said that he had shouted a warning to Danny and as Danny turned around so did Linkoa and Steve fired three rounds, hitting Linkoa twice and Danny once. By the trajectory of the bullet tracks that the surgeons have reported in their report I have deduced that the first bullet hit Linkoa at an angle of approximately 45degrees as he was standing on the roof, the second bullet entered his body at a 30 degree angle which indicates he was hit again as he fell, approximately fifteen feet from the ground. The third bullet that struck Danny was fired at an angle of only 4 degrees which means Steve would have been still crouching and shooting. From where Danny was initially standing, he should have been safe even if Steve had missed but I got to thinking about something Chin suggested." Che turned towards the two detectives sitting in the white high back chairs in front of McGarrett's desk as he continued, "If he stepped forward it would have placed him directly in Steve's line of fire when Steve missed the shot."

"So, what you are saying Che is Danny stepped forward for whatever reason just as Steve took that third shot?"

The small Oriental scientist nodded his confirmation as Nat rubbed his hands together and turned towards the two detectives sitting silently with them in the office. "Linkoa claimed that Steve shot Danny first and then shot him. The problem I have with Che's theory is the Emergency Room doctors have stated that Linkoa sustain his concussion when he fell and Kono you said in your own statement that Linkoa was lying unconscious on the ground when you arrived on the scene a few moments after you heard the shots. If Linkoa was hit first, then how did he know in the Emergency Room that Danny had been shot as well?"

"I think I may have the answer to that." Kono grinned. "I spoke to the ambulance attendants who transported Linkoa to the ER and they have both confirmed that they had discussed Danny's shooting while in the ambulance after Linkoa had regained consciousness. "

"So Linkoa decided to take advantage of all the confusion and tried to give himself a little bargaining chip by lying about what happened." Chin concluded but before Nat was able to respond the conversation was interrupted by the shrill ring of McGarrett's phone.

Snapping up the handset, Chin answered, "Kelly." He listened silently to the caller for a few minutes before thanking them and hanging up as he looked at the other men in the room and announced, "Well I guess we'll get our answers soon. That was the hospital. Danny's awake."

Pushing open the hospital room door, Doc cringed internally as he saw the look of hopeful expectancy on Danny's face. The look morphed into confusion and hurt when the man he was so obviously expecting did not follow Nat into the room.

"Where's Steve?' He asked weakly, still looking towards the door as it was and Nat crossed the room, placing a tape recorder on the small bedside table. Suddenly the confusion gave away to fear and he tried to rise as he gasped, "Steve? Has something…happened to Steve?" Turning to Bergman, Danny gasped, "Doc?'

"Steve's fine, Danny," Doc quickly stepped forward, reassuring the anxious young man in the bed, "He's waiting outside while Nat asks you a couple of questions but I'm sure he will be here as soon as he can."

"Danny, we need to ask you some questions about what you remember about being shot. Do you remember what happened?" Nat asked softly

"I was shot?" Danny's face creased with confusion as he stared at the the two men standing around his bed.

Doc's heart sunk at Danny's question, but he forced himself to remain silent as Nat nodded and then continued, "Dan I need you to try and remember what happened yesterday. I know that you were working on the cat burglaries case."

Danny nodded weakly. "Steve believed that Joey Rand was involved."

"That's right, Danny." Nat smiled encouragingly. "He also believed that Linkoa had murdered the room mate of Rand's girlfriend when she tried to flee with some of the jewels."

"The… the witness refused to pick him out of the lineup." Danny agreed tiredly. "Steve wanted…me and Kono to keep an eye on …Linkoa… while he interviewed…Rands and Michaels about Rand's car that he had…reported stolen."

Nat nodded, "Kono and you followed Linkoa to a souvenir shop."

"We thought that that's where…Linkoa might have been dropping of the stolen…jewelry." Danny continued breathlessly.

"What happened after you followed Linkoa there?"

'We…we radioed Steve…with the location." Danny closed his eyes in concentration as he tried to remember what had happened. "Linkoa went inside.' He started hesitantly, "Kono and I split up…Kono took the front…I…I took the back."

"Ok, Kono took the front and you took the back. What happened then?" Nat pushed.

Danny swallowed hard as the heart monitor beeps began to increase as he closed his eyes tighter and continued to talk. "I…I was standing near the back door….I had my back to the gate…I heard…heard Steve yell my name…and when I turned …around that's…that's when I saw…the gun aimed…at me?"

Nat leaned closer to the bed, his eyes never leaving the young man's pale face as he asked, "Who was aiming the gun at you Dan? Was It Steve?"

"NO! No!" Danny gasped breathlessly, his eyes wide with shock at the suggestion, "Linkoa…Linkoa was on…the roof…He had the …gun aimed …at me. If...it wasn't for Steve…shooting him…I wouldn't have had…a chance."

"So, Steve shot Linkoa?" Nat repeated as Danny nodded his head, "Are you positive that Steve never deliberately aimed his weapon at you?"

"No, why… would he!... Steve would …never aim…his gun at …me!" Danny denied vehemently as the soft beeps of the heart monitor increased alarmingly.

"Easy Danny, easy." Doc soothed the agitated young man as he glanced worriedly between the monitor and his increasing stressed patient before he turned back to the internal affairs officer and quietly ordered. "I think this is enough for now."

"No Doc," Danny interrupted weakly, "I'm okay… Nat needs to …know…what happened."

"Are you sure you feel up to this Dan?" Nat asked concerned at the young detective's obvious growing exhaustion.

The young detective nodded, "I'm fine." He answered breathlessly, "What else…do you need…to know?"

"Do you remember at all how you were shot?"

Danny bit his lip and fell silent as he looked down at the sheet that covered his legs. "My fault." He whispered. "I must have…stepped forward …when I tried to…back up Steve…Must have…stepped into …the line of …fire." Danny looked up with tears in his eyes, "Damn…rookie mistake…I should…have…known better... I…let Steve…down!"

"So, you are positive that Steve did not deliberately aim the gun at you and that Linkoa was hit first?" Nat pushed again.

"I told you…Nat…If it hadn't… been for Steve…Linkoa would have …shot me! He had no…choice. My own stupid…fault that…I got hit…Not Steve's!" Danny panted breathlessly, unable to catch his breath as he struggled to sit up in the bed, his frustration and anger evident in his drawn pale face as he glared up at the Internal Affairs officer. "If anyone is to …blame for the shootings…it's me!"

"That's enough!" Doc snapped as he stepped forward glancing between his agitated patient and the racing green blips on the heart monitor.

"It's okay Dan, just relax. No one is blaming Steve." Nat tried to soothe the upset detective, ignoring the angry physician "Linkoa claimed that he witnessed Steve make a murder attempt on you and then was shot by Steve in an attempt to silence him."

"What?" Danny gasped shocked at the accusation, "That's …a lie!"

Nat nodded, "I know it is Dan. What you just told us corroborates both Steve's statement and the forensic evidence." Switching of the tape recorder, Nat smiled as the younger man visibly relaxed against the pillows, "As far as this investigation is concerned, Steve was justified in the shooting of Linkoa and as for shooting you, I can confidently rule the shooting was accidental. Now if you will excuse me, I had better let Steve know that he's in the clear. I know he's anxious to see you. Take care Danny, I'll try and drop back to visit as soon as Doc springs you from Intensive Care."

"Thanks Nat." Danny whispered tiredly as the Internal Affairs officer picked up the tape recorder and waved his hand as he left the room.

The door to the small Intensive Room was pushed open a few minutes later and Danny smiled weakly as his Boss and closest friend stepped into the room. Lifting up his hand, he whispered a soft greeting to his boss and closest friend, "Steve."

"How is it Danno?' Steve asked nervously as he walked closer to the bed.

"Ah if you two will excuse me, I have some patients who been waiting patiently for my return. I'll be back to check on you later this afternoon young man." Doc growled gruffly as he turned and walked towards the door, pausing as he reached McGarrett's side, "And I expect to hear no more complaints from the nursing staff about you either Steve! I assume that you are planning to keep my young guest here company for a while?"

Steve smiled weakly as he glanced towards Danny, "If he will let me."

Doc smiled as he patted the younger man's shoulder, "The first thing out of his mouth when he woke was a question asking where you were Steve. I'll tell the nurses that you can stay as long as you want. Just try not to tire him out."

"Mahalo, Doc," Steve murmured, "Mahalo for everything."

"The only thanks I need is seeing him on the road to recovery." Doc replied smiling before he hurried from the room.

Reaching the side of the bed, Steve swallowed hard, as he was unable to stop the tears as he whispered brokenly, "I'm sorry Danno, I'm so sorry Aikane."

Reaching for McGarrett's hand, Danny shook his head and as his own tears began to fall, "I'm the one…who should be…apologizing…Steve. I'm the one…who messed up…not you. Made…a rookie mistake. Stepped…into your…line of fire…when I tried…to back you …up. My fault…not yours! If you…hadn't have …been there…Linkoa had me…dead to rights…I wouldn't …have had a …chance. I messed up…big time. I'm sorry!"

"You made a mistake, my friend. There is nothing to apologize for. You were just trying to protect me." Steve interrupted, horrified that Danny was blaming himself for his mistake, "I was the one who messed up big time. I was the one who shot you! I should have been more aware of where you were. I should never have taken that third shot. How can you ever forgive me?"

Danny blinked back the tears, his confusion written in the tired features of his face. "You shooting me…was a…accident, Steve! There's nothing…for me…to forgive."

"But I…"

Danny shook his head refusing to let Steve continue with his misguided guilt as his eyes slid closed, "It was a…accident… I don't blame you…please don't blame yourself…"

Steve stood next to the bed as he watched Danny lose the battle to stay awake. Squeezing the hand that he held in his own, he wiped away his tears. "Thank you Aikane," He whispered as he felt the great weight of guilt that had buried him under its weight lift as Danno's words echoed in his head, _'It was an accident…I don't blame you, please don't blame yourself.' _ "Thank you!" He whispered again as he released Danny's hand and turned and pulled the chair closer to the bed, settling into it as he watched over his closest friend.

**PAU**

* Episode- Full Fathom Five

** Episode- And They Painted Daisies On His Coffin


End file.
